Best of the Month: For movies, my favorite was To Be or Not to Be, which also happened to be my first Ernst Lubitsch film. I’ll have a full write-up on that in the next couple weeks. For games, both Rayman Origins and Killzone: Mercenary would rank among my all-time favorites for the Playstation Vita. Both are must plays, and the former is currently free via Playstation Plus. For TV, it was great to finally watch all of Firefly, a show that ended far too soon. And, of course, the final season of Breaking Bad was an absolute triumph.

Worst of the Month: Surprisingly enough, I greatly enjoyed every movie/game/show from this month. There were no duds at all.

How about you? What was the best movie you saw last month? What’s your favorite of those listed above?

Yeah, I thought Serenity was a pretty solid “conclusion”, though I definitely agree that there were many, many more stories that could have been told. Such a shame that it didn’t get any type of revival after that either.

I second this. Such a great selection of films this month. And on the topic of Breaking Bad, it didn’t “surprise” us as it had done so often, but it played with our nostalgia enough to be a satisfactory ending to perhaps the most justifiably over-hyped television show in history.

I thought Breaking Bad’s finale was a tad predictable, but the ride to that point was anything but. Any predictions I had before the season started were quickly shot down, and it really kept me on my toes. The resolution might have been wrapped up a bit too neatly, but it was still pretty damn satisfying.

I must be one of the three people on earth who didn’t have any interest in Breaking Bad. 🙂

Looking forward to your Wages of Fear post. I love the tense feeling of that film throughout but once their truck ride starts, it elevates to the whole another level. Love Manhattan as well. I love Allen as a director but I am almost negative about his acting. This might be his only role that I thouroughlly enjoy!!

I loved The Wages of Fear. It took a little while to get going, but the truck ride was nuts. I was surprised at how gruesome it got, especially that leg injury. Made me wince a bit.

And I agree about Woody Allen. I have yet to *love* any of his films, but Manhattan is easily the best one I have seen. He wasn’t as annoying as usual in that one, and I think that was a big reason why I liked it more. Could have done without the creepy relationship with the 17-year-old though. Kinda hard to look at that in a positive light, especially considering his real life issues.

Lots of great reviews to look forward to! Plus a lot of high end films noted in your post.

Can’t argue with ‘Serenity’. Lots of quiet odes to past sci-fi (‘Forbidden Planet’) and noirs (‘The Big Combo’ with Fante and Mingo). Also a superb homage to Frank Frazetta when River had vanquished the Reavers and the wall pulled down to have he back lit with sword and battle axe dripping blood.

‘Sexy Beast’ just plain rocks! Excelent and equal good and bad guys on top of a very clever heist!

While ‘Manhattan’ is one of Allen’s best post ‘Bananas’ films for quiet laughs and intriguing use of B&W.

‘Breaking Bad’ wrapped up very neatly with all loose ends snipped away in wicked ways. I’ve been wondering when Walt would use that M-60, but expected more of an open air and terrain ambush. Can’t say that Lydia didn’t get what she deserved. Being dangerously out of her league since first glance!

Walt’s soliloquy to his “Beautiful People” friends is one of the finest examples of the art in television this decade. And using ‘Baby Blue’ at the series’ end was genius.

And yes, Kingsley and McShane were flips sides of frightening evil in ‘Sexy Beast’. With loud and obnoxious supplied by Kingsley. And quiet, malevolent and brooding covered by McShane. Making him a form fitted shoo in for Al Sweringen in HBO’s ‘Deadwood’!

The Conjuring was a bit disappointing for me. I will include it in my forthcoming film recap that will attempt to catch up with the blogosphere after months of nearly no activity on my part (I already have two other posts written that need to be added, so I expect this to be a busier blogging month for me).
Sexy Beast is still on my must-watch list, but somehow others continue to slip by in front of it.
My favorite film of the month was definitely The Imposters. An absolute gem. One of the most heartwarming films I’ve seen in recent years.
I actually just started watching Breaking Bad not long ago (yes I am one of the few people left in this part of the world who had not joined the craze). I’m about midway through the second season and all I can say thus far is that it just keeps getting better.
Nice to see you’ve kept yourself busy with top-notch entertainment.

Cool you had no duds at all, great when that happens!
I liked Following [1998] a bit more than you did. It’s a film I can rewatch every 5 years or so.
I’ve considered watching Firefly, maybe I’ll give the pilot a go, and see if it’s for me, glad you enjoyed it!
Seems Frenzy [1972] was a pretty good later Hitchcock then?

Firefly is definitely worth a look. The pilot is basically two episodes in one, so it’s a bit lengthy, but it will give you a good idea if you will dig the show. I’m not a huge sci-fi guy, but I loved the series’ incorporation of both space and westerns. Plus there isn’t a bad character in the bunch — all of them are fun to get to know. Make sure to watch Serenity after you finish the show, too, as it makes for a nice conclusion.

Frenzy surprised me with how good it was. Most people seem to disregard Hitch’s later work, but this one holds up quite well. It’s pretty dark and twisted, kind of giving a glimpse as to what he could have done with no code to adhere by. Possibly the first (and only) film of his with nudity?